Adventure is something we all crave. From riding the fastest machines in production on a treacherous motocross track to a multi-day adventure into the great wide open, we want to do it. As settlers crossed the country in search of prosperity and a new life, they went through various landscapes and treacherous terrain on horseback, many of them pulling wagons on their own great adventurous journeys. I was recently given the opportunity for a modern-day trek through the Wild West with our final destination being one of the greatest of the natural wonders of the world, the Grand Canyon.
I'm sure you've heard me say this before, but I've been blessed with some amazing experiences these last few years. While Thad would kill to go on many of these trips, his schedule and family life take priority, as they should, but that leaves the door open for me, as was the case for this trip. Arctic Cat presented us an opportunity of a lifetime to try out its newest side-by-side machines on a three-day excursion through the rugged desert to the Grand Canyon, which would take our group of editors through gorgeous terrains and some of the most photogenic locations in the West. Reluctantly handing off the assignment to me, Thad told me to have fun. And this trip was about fun and adventure all while having the chance to test Arctic Cat's new Prowler lineup.
Our group gathered at the Casa Blanca Casino and Resort where Arctic Cat Media Representative Kale Wainer welcomed everyone and guaranteed that we'd be in for a very memorable trip. First on his agenda was to go over the Prowler lineup and discuss what is new or upgraded for the 2011 model year. I took notes on everything he said, but my mind was clearly in another world as I could only think about my maiden trip to the Grand Canyon. After the technical spiel ended, we were then introduced to our guide, the guy who'd lead us into the wilderness. Wally of Side x Side Outfitterz (www.sidexsideoutfitterz.com) leads regular trips to the Grand Canyon and would be our point man for the next three days. Wally has enough experience in the vast Nevada and Arizona deserts on trips like this, so he highly emphasized that we all drive our machines with care since we were going to be in the middle of nowhere and any repairs would have to be made on the trail with whatever we trucked along with us.
After a night of enjoying everything a Nevada casino has to offer and condensing my clothing and gear for a three-day excursion, I met with the group of Arctic Cat employees and other media representatives bright and early in the morning so we could get a jump start on the high temperatures expected for the day. Our destination was the Bar 10 Ranch (
www.bar10.com), which was 100 miles away through the hot, dry desert landscape and would be our hub for this trip. I took a seat in my Prowler 1000 XTZ, fired up the engine and joined the group as it serpentined through the parking lot out to the trailhead where our adventure would begin. We started off in a tight pack as we wound our way through neighborhoods but quickly put distance between each machine as we took to the dusty trails of the Nevada desert.
The dust from Wally's lead vehicle quickly twisted up a mountain road from the valley floor to the entrance of Grand Canyon-Parashant National Monument, which gave us our first breathtaking views of the terrain we were about to traverse. I started asking how close we were to the Grand Canyon that everyone sees in the postcards and was quickly informed we were still a ways away. The vistas and canyons had me fooled, but knowing I had an even better sight to see, I was ready to get the wheels rolling again. Our freight train of Prowlers constantly rolled along, sometimes looking like pack mules as we drove along steep rocky inclines only to be halted by the occasional flat tire. After a few hours on the trail we stopped to refuel our bodies with fresh lunch meats wrapped in a tortilla with all the fixin's before the final leg, which would put us at the Bar 10.